Top hold-down mechanism for paper feeders



May 8, 1928. 1,668,816

(I. L. LOW

TOP HOLDDOWN MECHANISM FOR PAPER FEEDERS Filed June 18. 1927 INVENTOR ATTO R N EY Patented May 8, 1928.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES I. LOW, 01' FRESNO, CALIFORNIA, ABSIGNOB TO LISENBY MANUFACTURING COMPANY, 01' FRESNO, CALIFORNIA, A CORPORATION.

TOP HOLD-DOWN MECHANISM FOR PAPER FEEDE BS.

Application filed June 18,

This invention relates to printing presses and particularly to the paper feeding mechanism thereof. In printing presses of a certain type the paper is fed rom a stack to the printing cylinder or like element of the press by a feeder which includes driven tapes on which the paper rests. In order to cause the paper to frictionally engage the tapes with the necessar pressure, so that the sheets will be propelled toward the cylinder in the proper order and at a constant speed, it is necessary to provide some means above the tapes to hold the paper down. At the same time it is also necessary 7 that such means shall be capable of being easily removed in order to clear the feeder if a sheet should stick, so as to enable such sheet to he removed from the feeder.

The principal object of my invention therefore is to provide a hold-downmeans constituting top-sheet wires, a top rider unit, and lazy fingers arranged in connection therewith; mounted on the feeder in such a manner that the various elements are individually removable, so that either the wire or the lazy finger and rider units are removable at the option of the operator without disturbing the other parts of the mechanism.

A further object is to mount such members so that after removal of the samereplacement thereof will not call for any adjustment and such members will always assume their identical original positions relative to the feeder to which such members were originally set.

A further object of the invention is to produce a simple and inexpensive device and yet one which will be exceedingly effective for the purpose for which it is designed.

These objects I accomplish by means of such structure and relative arrangement of parts as will, fully appear by a perusal of the following specification and claims.

In the drawings similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the several views:

Fig. 1 is a sectional elevation of a feeder showing one of the top sheet wire units removably mounted in connection therewith.

Fig. 2 is a similar view showing the mounting of the top rider .and lazy finger unit in connection with the feeder.

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary top plan view of a wire I 1927i Serial No. 199,824.

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary cross section on the line 44 of Fig. 2.

Referring now more particularly to the characters of reference on the drawings, the feeder to which my improved mechanism is attached is preferably of that type shown in my Patent No. 1,615,590, dated January 25th, 1927; while the printing press of which the feeder is a part is preferablyof that type shown in my Patent N 0. 1,587,968, dated June 8th, 1926.

The feeder comprises essentially side rails 1 supported on the frame 2 of the press. Upper and lower tape rolls 3 and 3 are mounted between the rails, with endless tapes 4 passing over the rollers, the upper runs of the tapes riding on the feeder pan 5. Supported by the rails just beyond the lower rolls 3 and horizontally alined with the upper surface thereof is a transverse lip 6 which delivers between the feed rolls 7 which are disposed just ahead of the printing cylinder 8 of the press.

Removably mounted in vertical slots 9 provided in the side rails 1 a short distance rearwardly over and above the upper tape rolls 3 is a rigid transverse smooth faced bar 10 clamped in place by a set screw 11. The sides and bottom faces of the bar are rectangularly disposed relative to each other but the top face is cut on a downward bevel toward the front side of the bar, or at an angle of 45 degrees to the bottom and rear faces thereof as shown. This bar forms the supporting means for the top sheet wire and other aper hold-down units.

Eacii top sheet wire unit (of which there are preferably two arranged in transversel spaced relation) comprises a wire 12 extend ing longitudinally of the feeder and flattened at its rear end as at 13 to lie above and close to the lip 6. Th forward end of the wire is adjustably clam d in a socket 14 formed in connection wlth a yoke 15 having a rectangular opening in its forward face arranged to sli horizontally and freely onto the bar 10. ounted on top of the yoke is a set screw 16, disposed substantially at right angles to the beveled face of the bar and adapted to on age the same when the yoke is in place on t e bar. It will be seen that with this arrangement the wire unit may be easily removed merely by retracting the screw. When the socket is rehas a snug fit with the bar or not, since the initial seating of the wire itself relative to said lip can be carried out independently of the fit of the yoke on the bar.

The top sheet rider and lazy finger unit I separate from the wire units comprises a yoke 17 substantially the same 'as the yoke and adapted to removabl engage the bar 10 and to be clamped t ereto y a set screw 18 disposed relative to the bar the same as the set screw 16. Anarm 19 projects from the yoke and extends lengthwise of the feeder inthe direction of the printing cylinder. A top sheet rider and ball retaining plate 20 is mounted on the arm 19, balls 21 projecting through holes provided in the plate so as to ride on the 'paper passing under said plate. These balls are prevented from displacement by keeper flanges 22. Lazy fingers 24, to rest at their rear ends on the lip 6 are connected at their forward ends to a transverse supporting bracket 25 which has a depending ton e 26 arranged to removably en e a socfldt 27 which is moiunted on the p ate 20' intermediate its en s. a

From the foregoing description it will be readily seen that I have roduced such a device as substantially fulfil s the objects of the invention as set forth herein.

While this specification sets forth in detail the latter to be clam the resent and preferred construction of the evice, still in practice such deviations from such detail may be resorted to as do not forma departure from the spirit of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention what I claim as new and useful and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In combination with a pa r-feeder for a printing press, a top-sheet rider structure, means for removably mounting said rider on the feeder, and a lazy finger unit removably mounted on the rider structure.

2. In combination a bar having adjacent sides at an angle to each other, a yoke hav ing an o ening in one face to pass over and fit the said ad acent sides of the bar, a bevel surface along the bar 0 posite and at an angle to said ad'acent' si es, screw in the yo e disposed substantially ,at a right angle to said bevel surface and adapted to engage the same.

3. In combination a bar having adjacent sides at an angle to each other, a yoke having an opening in one face to pass over and fit the said a jacent sides of the bar, and means between the bar and yoke for enabling (1 onto the bar to cause both said adjacent ar-sides to frictionally and equally engage the corresponding faces of the yoke-opening. I

4. In combination a bar having adjacent sides at an angle of 90 degrees to each other, a yoke having an opening in one face to pass over and fit against both said angled sides, a bevel surface on the bar disposed opposite and at an angle of degrees to said angled sides, and a set screw in the yoke to engage said bevel surface substantial y at right angles thereto.

In testimony whereof I afiix m CHARLES signature.

i. LOW.

and a clamping 

